A week after having five players named to the Pro Bowl, the Lions earned an even higher round of honors Friday in having five players named All-Pros.
That includes two first-team All-Pros in wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and right tackle Penei Sewell. It's vindication for St. Brown, who was snubbed for the Pro Bowl, making him the only wide receiver at least this century to be named an Associated Press first-team All-Pro and not make the Pro Bowl.
St. Brown was tied for second in the NFL in catches (119) this season with Tyreek Hill of the Dolphins, trailing only CeeDee Lamb of the Cowboys -- the other two receivers who received first-team All-Pro honors. He finished third in the NFL in yards (1,515) behind Hill and Lamb and tied for fourth with 10 touchdowns.
"I don’t know how many 1,500-yard receivers with 10 touchdowns didn’t make the Pro Bowl," St. Brown said with a smirk after torching the Vikings in the regular-season finale to hit both of his personal goals this year. "I guess I gotta look that up to see."
Sewell was the highest-graded offensive tackle in the NFL this season per Pro Football Focus, which also named him its Offensive Lineman of the Year. He allowed one sack, five quarterback hits and 20 quarterback pressures in 639 pass-blocking opportunities. He was also PFF's highest-graded run blocker among offensive tackles.
Suffice to say, Lions GM Brad Holmes nailed his first draft class in Detroit. He took Sewell in the first round (seventh overall) and St. Brown in the fourth, not to mention third-rounder Alim McNeill, PFF's sixth-highest-graded interior defender this season. Safety Ifeatu Melifonwu and linebacker Derrick Barnes were also part of that class, which laid the foundation for the Lions' rebuild. All five players were key contributors to a team that just won the NFC North for the first time ever. That's franchise-changing stuff.
It's the first time the Lions have produced two first-team All-Pros in the same season since cornerback Darius Slay and return man Jamal Agnew in 2017.
Not to be overlooked, center Frank Ragnow, rookie tight end Sam LaPorta and special teams ace Jalen Reeves-Maybin were named second-team All-Pros on Friday.
Ragnow, who played the entire season through a crippling toe injury and also battled knee and back injuries, was PFF's highest-graded center. He allowed one sack, five QB hits and 18 QB pressures 546 pass-blocking opportunities and was PFF's second-highest-graded run-blocker at his position. Jason Kelce of the Eagles was named first-team All-Pro at center.
LaPorta took the NFL by storm, breaking the rookie record for catches (86) by a tight end and racking up 889 yards and 10 touchdowns. He injured his knee in the Lions' regular-season finale, but hopes to play in Sunday night's wild-card game against the Rams. The first-team All-Pro tight end was George Kittle of the 49ers.
Reeves-Maybin, in his second tour of duty in Detroit, led the NFL in special-teams tackles and played a key role for the Lions in multiple fake punts as both a runner and a passer.